


Rescue

by BookJQ36



Series: The adventures of Malcolm Reed and my OFC [3]
Category: Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Didn't Know They Were Dating, Drown Malcolm Reed Month, Drunken Shenanigans, Drunkenness, F/M, Gen, Implied Relationships, Not Beta Read, Platonic Cuddling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-06-24
Updated: 2017-07-04
Packaged: 2018-08-15 16:58:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8064667
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BookJQ36/pseuds/BookJQ36
Summary: On a mission to a warp-capable planet one member of the away team has a close brush with death and another must face his greatest fears in order to save her and himself.





	1. The River

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spoilers for S2x03"Minefield"

Minshara-class planet, 1340 hours, January 27 2152

 Hoshi walked along the bank of a frozen river, stopping every so often to scan the vegetation or to look at the rest of the away team. Reed stood on the opposite bank, scanning something which looked like a discarded tool while Jean was trying to coax a small animal out from under a shrub. Trip was playing in the snow and Captain Archer was speaking with T’Pol on his communicator.

 "We should start bringing science teams down to the surface. There’s plant and animal life down here that’s adapted to survive in the low temperatures. Novakavitch and Cutler would be over the moon down here.”

 On the bridge T’Pol raised an eyebrow. “I believe that, technically speaking they are already ‘over the moon’ since Ensign Mayweather has put us into an orbit higher than any natural satellites.”

 Archer laughed and tried to cover it with a cough, allowing himself to smile and shake his head in amusement only because she couldn’t see him. He started to explain but Travis beat him to it.

 “It’s just a saying, Sub-Commander. Saying someone is ‘over the moon’ just means that they’re very excited or happy.”

  _Yet another human idiom_.

 She looked at him impassively. “Thank you for the clarification, Ensign. Captain, our scans indicate that this is indeed a warp-capable civilization, however their dwellings and clothing seem primitive. Cultural contamination may not be an issue with these people but I advise caution in initiating first contact–“

 “Understood. We’ll try to make a good first impression. Assemble a science team but don’t send them to the surface until I give the word.”

 “Captain?”

 “I don’t want to bring any more personnel down here until after we’ve talked to these people and gotten their permission to have scientists poking around. Introducing them to our species with a dozen of our people at my back could be seen as a hostile move.”

 T’Pol nodded. _He’s being prudent, a welcome change_. “Understood. A wise precaution.”

While they were talking Archer heard a shout of alarm, followed by a loud splash.

“Cap’n!” Trip came running towards him. “Cap’n! Hoshi just fell through the ice!”

“Archer out” he hissed into the comm. and shoved it into his pocket before running to the nearer bank.

The current was strong and it was carrying Hoshi downstream, but because of the ice it was hard to see where she was and impossible for her to get a breath. The other four members of the away team were running along the river, trying to keep her in sight. Every few seconds they’d see her face looking blurred and distorted by the ice as she pounded against it, trying desperately to break through.

All of a sudden Reed put on a burst of speed and raced ahead of everyone else, drawing his phase pistol and aiming it at the ice. Trip saw what he was doing and drew his own weapon, shouting to the others to do the same. When all four were firing their weapons at a spot downstream far away from Hoshi, Reed started aiming at a closer patch of ice which melted by the time he got to it.

Throwing his weapon and jacket onto the bank, he took a deep breath and then jumped into the frigid water. It was deeper than he’d thought... _focus! You can have your panic attack after saving her._ Hoshi hadn’t reached that part of the river yet, so Reed waited for her to come, looking underwater every so often to make sure he didn’t miss her.

He’d just come up for air when he felt something scrabbling at his leg. **_Hoshi!_** He went back under and grabbed for her, but she was just beyond his reach. He dove under the ice, swimming after her and trying to catch her before she got swept past the area of the ice that the rest of the team was trying to melt.

 _I hope they realize what my plan is, otherwise we’ll both be dead_.

He could just see her. She was closer now and he grabbed the first thing his hand touched; her arm. She was just barely conscious but she instinctively latched onto him and together they were carried downstream. An eternity later, Reed felt himself being dragged out of the water and up the bank.

 _Air! Sweet air!_ He gulped it in greedily as he patted the ground next to where they were sitting. _Good, solid, firm ground._

“We need blankets from the pod!” Jean shouted and Trip nodded, shooting off in that direction as she started to check both patients. She scanned Reed first and saw that he was alright. His body temperature was lower than normal and his pulse was racing, but otherwise he was fine. Hoshi was still partially tangled with Reed and Jean was about to start scanning her when the captain stepped in.

Archer patted Reed on the shoulder in thanks before lifting Hoshi from on top of him. He lay her down carefully less than a meter away and Jean moved in to check her vital signs. Hoshi’s body temperature was below normal, her pulse was thready and erratic and she wasn’t breathing. Jean administered a mild stimulant and performed CPR. A minute later, Hoshi opened her eyes and sat up, coughing.

Meanwhile, Trip had run back with the blankets which he wrapped around Hoshi and Reed. Both of them were shivering continuously and nodded their thanks for the blankets.

”That was very quick thinking, Malcolm. I’m not sure what else to say, but if Starfleet gave medals I’d recommend you for one.” Archer was smiling broadly at him.

“Th-thank y-you s-s-sir,” Reed managed, taking his hands out from under the blanket and pulling it more tightly around himself. _It wasn’t this cold earlier, was it? Right, cold water, cold air. My jacket is somewhere... it’s still dry, I think._

Jean stood up from seeing to Hoshi and turned to see that Archer was still talking to Reed. She smiled. _Good, he’s congratulating him._

“Hoshi’ll be alright, Captain, but she might need a little help warming up.”

“Understood, Ensign.”

She could have sworn Archer was smirking. It was just for a second when she mentioned warming Hoshi up, but it seemed like he had a mischievous glint in his eye. A moment later it was gone and she dismissed it as something she’d imagined. He nodded to her, patted Reed’s shoulder again and went over to Hoshi.

She walked over to Reed and smiled at him, resisting the urge to rush forward and hug him tightly. “That was probably the dumbest and bravest thing I’ve ever seen anyone do.”

He smiled as she sat down next to him. “W-well, it w-w-worked, d-didn’t it?” She moved closer to him and started rubbing his arms through the blanket.

“We need to get you indoors. Someplace warm where you can get into some dry clothes.”

He nodded enthusiastically and gave a strong shiver. Just rubbing his arms wasn’t working too well. Jean shook her head. _I should’ve just trusted my instincts._ She grabbed him in a hug and rubbed his back, trying to give him some of her body heat. After the initial surprise, he moved closer and hugged her in return, trusting that she’d hold his blanket in place.

They held each other tightly for a while without speaking, then suddenly Reed’s eyes went wide and his breath came raggedly. He was terrified. But of what? He was frightened and confused until Jean started rubbing his back more gently and speaking comfortingly in his ear.

“Shhh. It’s alright. You’re alright. Hoshi’s safe and so are you. You saved her, remember? Then we pulled both of you out of the water… Hush, Malcolm, hush. It’s alright, I’ve got you. You’re safe now. We’ve moved away from the river. No one else is going to fall in.”

_The river! That was it!_

He’d started to panic when he jumped in after Hoshi, but he pushed the fear aside to focus on the task at hand. Now that his job was done the panic came surging back. But why did it wait? Why didn’t it hit when the captain was talking to him?

_It would have been awful if Captain Archer saw me like this. With Jean it’s different. She’s seen me at my absolute worst and hasn’t ever teased me or thought less of me for it. She’s taken care of me and helped me get through situations where I would’ve lost my head otherwise._

Suddenly he had an epiphany. _It’s because I feel so safe around her, so comfortable. I don’t have to put on a brave face for her to accept me or care about me. She takes me as I am, without asking awkward questions or judging me._

He smiled and let the fear wash over him completely. Jean soothed him and he buried his face in her neck, allowing himself to be afraid because he knew that it wasn’t wrong.

 Eventually it passed and he realized just how tightly he’d been holding her. He loosened his grip and found that her cheek was resting against his hair.

 “You alright?” Her words sent an odd kind of buzzing sensation over his scalp. It was pleasant, in a strange way.

“Yes. I...“ He pulled back to see her face. Her eyebrows were knit together and one was slightly lower than the other. _She’s worried_. “I am. Thank you.” She still seemed worried.

 He smiled, a real smile, and accompanied it with a hug to convince her. “I’m alright now.”

 “Good. I... um,” She let out a shuddery breath and looked up at him searchingly. “I’m glad that you’re alright. When you started shooting at the ice I knew what you were going to do. I was so worried that you’d get stuck under there, trying to save her. I’m glad it worked and you’re both safe, but if it had gone wrong, if something had happened to you... “

 She bit her lip and looked away from him as she trailed off. They were still holding each other, so he gently squeezed her shoulder, urging her on. When she turned back a second later, her eyes were wet. ”You’re very important to me, Malcolm. I don’t want anything bad to happen to you.”

 He gently brushed away her tears with his thumb before they could freeze. “You know the rules, ensign. Only one of us can be a mess at a time, and it was your turn last month.” His tone was affectionate, caring and silly all at once. He was almost never silly, except around her.

 They trusted each other unquestioningly and she knew that his shoulder was available if she ever needed it. But how she felt about him, that was something she would keep to herself. It made her feel guilty sometimes, knowing his big secret and withholding her own, but she just couldn’t tell him. However, she could indulge herself by hugging him again under the pretense of trying to warm him up, and she could enjoy how sweet and vulnerable he was being at the moment.

 They were holding onto each other in a way that didn’t let her see his face, but he smiled anyway. “You’re very imp-portant to me too.” Now his fear had passed, he realized just how cold he was.

 “I d-don’t sup-pose you know where m-my jacket is?” His hands were frozen and he remembered that his gloves were in the jacket pockets.

 Her chin was resting on his shoulder. “You dropped it on the bank before you jumped in. It should still be dry. I’ll ask Trip to get it.”

 “I just n-need m-my guh-gloves.”

 She shook her head and laughed in disbelief. “What you need is to be in your quarters, in bed, under a huge mound of blankets with a steaming pot of tea and a good book. Your hands are cold?”

 He nodded, not wanting to stutter any more. The warm, comforting image she had conjured up floated in his mind as she unwound her arms from around him and held out her hands. “Let me see."

 She frowned and tutted very softly as she examined his hands. “These aren’t fingers, they’re icicles.” She cupped her hands around his, exhaling warm breath on them every so often while she tried to gently massage heat back into them.

 After a while his hands began to thaw, but the rest of him had started shivering violently. She looked at him critically and then muttered “that’s it, I’m pulling rank as your doctor. Commander!” She raised her voice and unintentionally made Reed wince. “Sorry” she whispered, eyes wide and apologetic.

 Trip came over and stood grinning at them. “Something I can do for you, Ensign?” He always got a kick out of it when she called him by his rank or when Reed did. They were usually on a first-name basis, but on missions or in crises they went back to standard protocol.

 “Could you find Reed’s jacket and phase pistol? They’ll be on the river bank where he jumped in.”

 “No problem. I’ll be back in a minute.” He smiled at them again and took off upstream. On the way he passed Hoshi and Archer, who seemed to be having an intense conversation with Dr. Phlox over the comm.

 “Are you sure, Doctor? None of us brought extra clothes so there’s nothing for them to change into, and I really don’t think being naked would be good for either of them in this cold.”

 All Trip caught as he sped by was the word ‘naked.’ He smiled but didn’t slow down. _I’ll ask him about it later._

 While Phlox and the captain were talking, Hoshi managed to stop shivering and started coyly unzipping her uniform. Archer smirked before he zipped her up, shaking his head ‘no’ as he tried to listen to Phlox. She started to pout but shivered instead, so he sat down behind her and encircled her with his arms.

 Hoshi leaned back against his chest and sighed happily. Archer gave her an annoyed look and then turned his focus back to the communicator. “I’m sorry, but could you repeat that?”

 “Captain, it is imperative that Lieutenant Reed and Ensign Sato go someplace warm where they can remove their wet clothes immediately. Given the temperature in your area, their clothes will begin to freeze soon and then they will go into hypothermic shock.”

 Sub-Commander T’Pol spoke up. “Captain, we have detected a settlement less than a kilometer south east from your current position. Perhaps it would be possible for you to seek shelter there.”

 “Understood. Archer out.” He closed his communicator and stood up, bringing a reluctant Hoshi with him. He saw Trip come back along the river bank holding a jacket and a phase pistol. _Right, Malcolm dropped those when he went in after Hoshi_.

 He raised his voice and addressed the whole team. “Alright everybody, we’re moving out.”


	2. The River

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spoilers for season one episode "Shuttlepod One"

_Minshara-class planet, 1508 hours, January 27 2152_

 Reed was sitting alone at a table far off in the corner. He’d been uncomfortable when Archer and Trip kept calling him a hero while they were walking away from the river. He didn’t enjoy that much attention. It had been even worse when they first came in and asked the tavern owner where they could get some dry clothes.

 “One of my friends fell into the river and another friend jumped in to save her.”

 When he heard this, the owner immediately shouted it for the whole tavern to hear. Everyone had shouted that Reed was a hero, making a big fuss over him when all he wanted to do was rest and warm up.

 Fortunately Archer had gotten the owner’s attention again. “Do you know where we can find...”

 “Dry clothes? Certainly! My children are grown and they visited me recently. I found some of their old clothes but they didn’t want them. Your friends are more than welcome to them if they fit.”

 Half an hour later both Reed and Hoshi had changed into new outfits and were sitting with the rest of the team at a round wooden table. After a while, Trip went up to the bar to get drinks, and when he got back to the table Reed had gone off to sit by himself.

 “Here you go, Hoshi. Try not to drink it all at once.” He grinned until she squeezed some of the water out of her hair and flicked it at him.

 “Very funny sir.”

 A sudden shiver wracked her body and Archer put an arm around her to warm her up. “Drink up Hoshi.” He nudged the hot oversized mug towards her and put the blanket from the pod around her again. “I can’t let my favorite comm. officer get dehydrated.”

 She smiled up at him softly. “Yes sir.”

 Trip and Jean shared confused looks. “Are they...?” she mouthed silently at the engineer. Usually Hoshi would’ve read her lips, but the linguist seemed preoccupied just then. Trip only answered with a shrug. He and the captain were close friends but Archer didn’t always tell him everything. Which reminded him ...

 “Where’s Malcolm?” Trip looked around for his more reticent friend.

 Jean nodded over to the small table where Reed was sitting by himself and shivering. He seemed just as cold as Hoshi, but there was no warm arm around him and no hot drink to drive the chill from his bones.

 Seeing him over there all alone and shivering miserably was just too painful to watch. She had to do something. “I’m going over there.” She stood up from the table and started towards the bar.

 Trip caught up with her and put a hand on her arm. “Hey. Maybe he doesn’t want any company.” His voice was low, concerned.

 She looked up at him and smiled a confused smile. “He might not want company right now, but he needs it.” There wasn’t any other way to put it.

 “Alright. I’ll stay with the cap’n.. and try ta figure out what's goin' on with those two.” He returned to their table and sat down, watching Archer and Hoshi with growing curiosity.

 When she got to the bar, Jean asked the bartender for the same kind of drink that Trip had gotten for Hoshi. He smiled and assured her that it would warm her friend up in no time. She thanked him and headed over to Reed, sneaking a mouthful of the hot drink on her way.

 It tasted strong. It was nutty and flavorful with spices delicately woven in so that it was sweet at first but rich and tangy as she swallowed. She snuck another mouthful when she was almost at the table, savoring it before she forced herself to stop tasting his drink.

 “This might sound patronizing, but I’m proud of you.” She came up beside him and sat down in a nearby chair.

 He looked at the scrubbed wood of the tabletop and accepted the drink. “Thanks. I don’t mind being patronized by you, long as you don’t start with any of that ‘hero’ nonsense.”

 He hunched his shoulders and huddled over the steaming mug, speaking into it as he drank. One of the blankets from the shuttle pod was still wrapped around him, along with a thick one which the tavern owner had given to him. He seemed cold despite the warm layers and put the mug down as a strong shiver ran through him.

 She scooted her chair closer to his and started running her hands up and down his arms, trying to warm him up. He could barely feel her touch through the blankets, but smiled anyway. “Thanks, Jean.”

 “Anytime. D’you mind if I coddle you for a while? Just to make sure you’re ship-shape in Bristol fashion?”

 He looked at her curiously, surprised by her use of the nautical phrase. “Where’d you learn tha... nevermind. No, I don’t think I’d mind some moderate coddling. _Uhh_.” An especially strong shiver shook him, making his teeth chatter.

 She slid the mug towards him again and put her arms around him. “Easy, tough guy. Here, drink up.” He smiled his thanks and took a few mouthfuls.

 “Do me a favor? The next time I’m about to jump into a river or sink to the bottom of a lake in a derelict spacecraft...”

 She held up a hand in front of his mouth and nodded. “I’ll stop you.” They smiled at each other, and as he began to drink, she touched the back of her hand to his cheek.

 “Your face is still cold.” She frowned. “It seems like you get the rough end on most of our missions. Usually I believe in karma, but you’re such a good, sweet man. It just doesn’t make sense for so many bad things to be happening to you.”

 He tried to ignore the fact that she was holding him and spoke to the table instead of looking at her. “I’m not so good.”

  _Oh. My. God._

 It was only with a great effort that she stopped herself from rolling her eyes, but she didn’t refrain from shaking him slightly and touching his chin to get him to look at her. “Yes you _are_ , and whoever gave you that idea really needs to have their head examined. You are a kind, brave, smart and wonderful man.”

 He paused, chewing on her words as he drank. She really thought that highly of him? _If only she knew the feeling was mutual. I’d even use the same adjectives._ He didn’t want to discount what she’d said, but he didn’t want to dwell on it, either. “So, is this the moderate coddling?”

 “Yes.” She managed to look serious long enough to nod, but then a smile crept onto her face. “Is your uniform still frozen?”

 ”I don’t think so, but ‘m not really sure.” He fumbled around with his hand, trying to get it out of the blanket cocoon for a minute or so. His uniform was on a nearby chair and he fingered the cloth for a few seconds. “It’s thawed, mostly.”

 Their walk from the river took less than fifteen minutes, but during that time his waterlogged uniform had managed to freeze. Getting out of his uniform and into the old fashioned clothes was such a relief that he considered leaving the twisted blue one-piece to thaw on the floor in the tavern’s back room. He hadn’t done it, of course, but it was very tempting.

 “Have the rest of your drink while it’s hot.” He nodded and picked up the mug again.

 While he sipped the drink, she rubbed his back through the blankets. He was shivering less since he’d changed into the dry clothes, but it was still enough to make her worry. “We need to get you back to the ship so you can warm up properly.”

 He tilted the mug to get at the last drops, looking sidelong at her as he did. “No argument here. Uhh, so cold.” He closed his eyes and leaned against her, hugging the still-warm mug to his chest and mumbling happily. “But you’re warm. So nice and warm.”

 She smiled over his shoulder and hugged him close. “You’re rambling, mister. C’mon, lets get you back to Enterprise.” He shook his head and didn’t make a move to get up.

 “How does a warm shower sound right about now, mm? And then afterwards you can put on some nice comfortable pjs and get into bed under a thick quilt. Maybe even curl up with a good book. How does all that sound?”

 “D’we have to get up? Leave the pub? Leave all these nice people and my new blanket?”

  _He doesn’t just sound tired and cold. He sounds... wait, what was in that drink?_

 She reached behind herself with one hand and took out a scanner. A few seconds later, a thin beep confirmed her theory. The hot drink had been some kind of strong whiskey. _“This’ll warm him up nicely,”_ the tavern owner had told her with a wink. _“He’ll warm up right quick with a good mug or two.”_

 She shook her head, muttering “I’m sure you thought it would.”

 As a doctor, she knew that alcohol increases blood flow to the skin and decreases blood flow to muscles, meaning that more body heat is lost and less shivering happens. Shivering is how the body warms itself up, so with less body heat being produced and existing heat being lost to the air, hypothermia is much more likely to happen. _And Malcolm just downed a big mug of hard whiskey. Enterprise, Sickbay, now **!**_

 “I’m afraid we do have to leave, but there are plenty of blankets on Enterprise. I’ll lend you my quilt for a few days. You remember how warm that quilt is.”

 Reed nodded as she began to stand up, and he went up with her so she’d still keep him warm. They wound through the tables, around columns and other customers until they got to the table where the Captain, Trip and Hoshi were sitting. Hoshi had also gotten the cocoon treatment and was sitting between the two officers, swathed in several blankets. She looked cold and tired and she was slowly drinking from her own mug of hot whiskey. Her wet uniform sat on one of the benches, dripping onto the floor.

 Trip pulled up chairs for them and they sat down. Jean gestured to the drink. “Hoshi, I don’t think you should have any more of that.”

 “Why not? Issn’t too tasty but ’s warming me up. Isn’t that right, Jon?” She giggled and kept drinking.

 Archer gave her a puzzled look and then turned to Jean. “Ensign? Some answers would be nice.”

 “The drinks we got for Hoshi and Reed were hot whiskey, and alcohol is the worst thing you could give to someone at risk for hypothermia. The tavern owner probably didn’t know that and was honestly trying to help.”

 The captain nudged Trip and they stood up, both men helping Hoshi to her feet. “Let’s get back to Enterprise and have Phlox look them both over, make sure they aren’t in any danger.”

 After a few steps Hoshi stumbled, but the captain caught her. She landed in his arms with a mildly confused look on her face, leaning back to look at Archer. “Sirr...‘M I drunk?”

 Archer smiled kindly at her. “It looks that way, Hoshi.”

 “Bene sane quod ebriola sentio.” A minute later she started giggling again.

 Trip looked confused. “What’d she say? What language was that?”

 “It was Latin. She said ‘very good because I feel drunk.’ ”

 Reed piped up. “You speak Latin too? I say, that’s pretty impressive Jean.”

 “Him too?” Trip pointed at Reed and laughed when Jean nodded.

 Jean rolled her eyes at him impatiently. “Laugh later. Just help me get him out of here.”

 Trip came and stood on Reed’s other side, helping to keep his friend steady, although he seemed to need less help than Hoshi. As they headed towards the bar to pay their tab, the tavern owner shook his head and smiled.

 “That won’t be necessary. You’re the first off-worlders I’ve had in a while and y’could say I’m the official welcoming committee in these parts. Free drinks lead to free trade, y’might say. But like I said there’s no charge, and your friends can keep those blankets and the clothes. They’ve seen better days but they’re still a good sampling of our craftsmanship. Keep ‘em as souvenirs.”

 The team nodded in appreciation and Archer started to say something about persuing future relations, but Reed wanted to put his two cents in and spoke up before the captain got a chance. When he stepped forward, Jean and Trip shared a look. _“This should be interesting”_ Jean muttered.

 “I’d just want to say thank you very much. I’ve grown quite attatched to this blanket an I wasn’t looking forward t’ giving it up. And the drink was good too so... eh?”

 Trip had grabbed his arm and pulled him back a step. “Malcolm!” he hissed in the Englishman’s ear. “That’s enough for now.” He didn’t want to let Reed say anything which he might regret later, like discussing the physical attributes of female crew members.

 Reed grinned and bobbed his head cheerfully as he was steered toward the door. “Whatever you say, commander. Hey, hey,” he tugged at Trip’s sleeve. “How about some Bourbon, hmm?”

 Trip shook his head but couldn’t suppress a grin and Jean was trying to laugh silently. As a result she was nearly doubled over and only breathing in sudden gasps. She’d never seen Reed drunk before and seeing him this jovial was simply hilarious.

  _Who knew he’d be a fun drunk?_

 “I think you’ve had enough already.” Trip’s voice was firm but had a slight quaver of laughter in it.

 Reed shrugged as they went outside and huddled against Jean when the cold air hit him. “Why issit that whenever I get drunk its always sso damn cold?” His teeth chattered and he started shivering violently again.

 “I don’t know why.” She kept her arms around him, rubbing his back and arms while trying to give him some of her body heat. Trip played helmsman and steered them along the road towards the woods where the shuttle pod was hidden. Archer had given up on trying to help Hoshi walk and was just carrying her. They were talking quietly and Trip couldn’t make out what they were saying, but the conversation seemed intimate.

 “How far to the pod?” Jean was looking back at him so he stopped trying to listen in on the other conversation.

 “It’s pretty close, around the next bend.”

 She frowned. “Not close enough for my liking.”

 Reed was shaking like a leaf buffeted by the wind. His head was resting on her shoulder and he looked up at her reproachfully. “What happened to the hot shower an’ pajamas an’ the warm quilt you talked about? Hmm? Looks like we’re back at the damn river. Why’d we come back here?” Suddenly he was too tired to keep his eyes open and mumbled the rest of his speech into her jacket with his eyes closed.

 “All that has to wait until after we’re back on Enterprise and Phlox has given you a once over in Sickbay. Hey,” she shook his shoulder. “You can sleep later. Stay awake for a little while.”

 “Whatever you say, Dr. Jean. That’s pretty funny, Dr. Jean.” He laughed. It was a deep, rich sound which carried well on the cold air. As they moved through the forest echoes of his laughter drifted up to the treetops, startling the birds from their perches so they flew away cawing indignantly.

 A minute later the away team reached the pod. After the captain had put Hoshi on one of the benches in back they poured Reed inside. Both he and Hoshi were laughing helplessly as the pod took off.

 Trip nudged Jean and she chuckled as they left the atmosphere. “I can’t wait to see Malcolm’s face when he finds out he was drinking on duty.” They both grinned evilly at each other.

 They docked with Enterprise just before 1600 hours and as they set down in the shuttle bay Jean turned around to check on her friend. The smile quickly left her face and she turned back to Trip, looking very serious.

 “Whoever tells him should break it to him gently. You know how serious he is about that stuff. Besides, the hangover’ll give him some idea of what happened.”


	3. Home Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Teeny tiny chapter

_Crew Quarters, B Deck, 0136 hours, January 27 2152_

 Once Phlox agreed to release Reed from Sickbay, Jean and Trip took him straight to his quarters, glad that they didn’t need to walk past the Armory to get there. He mumbled something about needing to fix the aft cannon, but since he was in the limbo that comes after drunkenness and before a hangover, it wasn’t too hard for them to talk him out of it. By the time they were at his door, Reed was asleep on his feet. Once inside, he automatically headed for a chair. His friends saw that he had trouble untying his boots and they offered to help him out of his borrowed clothes. Still half-asleep and somewhat drunk, he wasn’t inclined to argue, even when they helped him into bed.

 Soon after he lay down, Reed was sound asleep. He mumbled something quietly, pressing his face into the pillow and then yawning softly. One of his hands reached out from under the sheets and groped around briefly, clumsily trying to pull the covers up over his shoulder.

 Jean smiled at him fondly and shook her head, moving in to adjust the blankets so he’d be more comfortable. She drew them up to his chin gently so as not to wake him and then lingered by his bed for a bit. After a minute’s thought she stepped over to his locker and took out a spare blanket, which she then unfolded and spread over his bed.

 Trip had stood back from the bed to watch Jean fussing with the blankets. After a minute or so she stepped back too, smiling thoughtfully as she looked at the sleeping man _._

  _He really is wonderful. Facing his deepest, darkest fear to save a crewmate. I don’t think he even hesitated before jumping in. But the last couple times he’s gone swimming he had nightmares afterwards, so ... ._

 She nudged Trip, speaking quietly to avoid waking Reed. “One of us should stay with him. He’ll probably be disoriented when he wakes up, not to mention hung-over.”

 He bobbed his head once and then started pushing her towards the door, whispering firmly. “I’ll stay. You’ve gotta get some sleep after sittin’ up with him in Sickbay.”

 She wanted to argue, to say that she’d been dozing most of the time she’d sat by Reed’s bed, but a yawn stopped her so she just nodded. “Alright. What time is it?”

 Trip looked around for the clock. “S’ almost two in the mornin’. I’ll stay with ‘im for a while but I’m gonna need some shuteye too.”

 “I’ll come back at 0700 to relieve you. Oh, here,” she went across the room and grabbed one of the chairs, being careful to pull it over the deck quietly. “I’ve spent enough time in here to know, this is the comfiest chair in the room.” She put the chair near the head of the bed and gestured for Trip to sit down in it.

 He did, and when he leaned back a surprised smile spread across his face. “Wow. Now this is an easy chair. Why’d he get one in his quarters an’ I didn’t?”

 She rolled her eyes and stepped so that she was nose-to-nose with the engineer, raising her eyebrows as she spoke. “Between you and Malcolm, who do you think needs more help trying to relax? It’s not exactly something that comes naturally to him. Anyway, *yawn* I’ve gotta get to bed before I fall over. ‘Gnight.”

 “Hey” he whispered at her back. “You forgot to call me ‘sir’.”

 She was about to open the door and step into the corridor but stopped with her hand in midair, and when she turned there was a strange look on her face. “Goodnight, sir, and kiss my ass.” To complete the effect she grinned and blew him a kiss before disappearing through the doorway.


	4. Friendly Company

 

_Crew Quarters, B Deck,  0712 hours, January 28 2152_

 Trip was dozing in the chair when Jean came back the next morning. She stood just inside the door, smiling affectionately at the two sleeping men before stepping over to Trip and nudging his foot with hers. He didn’t wake. After a moment’s thought, she covered his mouth with one hand so any noise he might make when he woke up wouldn’t disturb Reed.

 “Trip. C’mon, Trip. Wake up.” Nothing. An evil glint came into her eyes. “Commander!” she hissed into his ear. “There’s a problem in the warp core!”

 Immediately he sat bolt upright in the chair, almost knocking her backwards as she leaned over him. He looked panicked as his eyes darted around the room for a few seconds. Seeing one friend asleep in bed and another standing close to him, with a smile tugging at her lips, reminded Trip where he was.

 He relaxed, gesturing for her to move her hand. When she did he leaned forward, a serious but sleepy look on his face. “Y’really shouldn’t do that t’ a guy, ‘specially when he’s sleepin.” He was awake enough to remember to whisper, but so sleepy that his southern drawl was exaggerated.

 She shrugged, pursed her lips and put a hand in her pocket, looking down at the deck. “I couldn’t wake you up otherwise. Unless you’d rather sleep here than in your quarters.” She didn‘t look at him when she spoke, letting him know that despite her cheeky tone, she was sorry. “Anything exciting happen since I left last night?”

 Trip stretched his arms up over his head, making small, satisfied noises when he heard his joints pop. He yawned, closing his eyes, and then tried to blink away his sleepiness. “Mm? M’sorry, didja ask me somethin’?”

 Smiling, she patted his arm and tried to heft him out of the chair. “Mister, you need to find a bed and go to sleep in it, soon.”

 He stood up, yawned again and looked at her owlishly, his expression asking her to repeat her question. Her hand was still on his arm, and she steadied him when he swayed on his feet.

 “I asked if anything exciting happened in here after I left.”

 “Not really.” He roughly scrubbed a hand across his face, acknowledging the stubble on his jaw and blinking wide. _Damn, but I need coffee._

 “Malcolm woke up thirsty a couple times an’ I got him water, an it seemed like he was havin’ a bad dream a couple hours ago. Kept mumblin’ somethin’ about bein’ stuck under the ice. Quieted down pretty quick, though. I was gonna wake him up, but jus when I was about to he seemed alright again. Little while ago he said he felt sick so I helped him to the bathroom and then back to bed afterwards. Since then he’s been sound asleep.”

 She patted Trip’s arm and started to lead him away from the bunk. “It sounds like you’d make a good nurse. I’ll take over in here. You’ve earned yourself a few hours of shuteye. Go sleep.”

 They were halfway to the door when a low but distinctly annoyed voice caught their ears. “Could you keep it down? I’m trying to sleep in here, and you two aren’t making it easy.”

 Right away they flashed each other huge grins and came over to the bed. Trip patted Reed on the shoulder, frowned when his friend winced, and seconds later was all concern. “Hey pal. How’re ya feelin’?” His voice was soft. He’d had bad hangovers and didn’t want to make this one any worse for his friend.

 “Ruddy awful. Thirsty. ‘S too bright and loud in ‘ere.”

 Reed had propped himself up on one elbow and was halfway between sitting up and lying down, trying to decide which would be more comfortable. He rubbed the side of his hand into one eye, then the other, blinked sleepily a few times and then squinted at his visitors.

 “How’d I get back here, anyway? Last thing I remember is being in the pub, but after that it’s all just a blur... can someone please tell me why my head hurts so damn much?”

 The questions weren’t directed at anyone in particular. It seemed like he was talking to himself.

 “After Phlox released you from Sickbay you weren’t really awake, so Trip and I helped you get to your quarters.”

 “That’s right.” Trip stepped up after sharing a look with Jean. “We got you into bed, made sure you were nice and comfy. I stayed here for a while, just in case you needed anything.”

 “Lovely, one mystery solved, then.” Reed grumbled, starting to fiddle with the edge of his covers. After a few seconds he froze, closed his eyes and sighed. When he looked up at them again he was grimacing. “I, um... I don’t suppose I thanked either of you last night, for helping me?”

  _And now he’s back. Well, it was fun while it lasted, but it had to end sooner or later_.

 She smiled ruefully and sat down on one corner of Reed’s bed. He seemed startled for a second but relaxed considerably when she smiled. “Feel free to thank us now. And even though you were pretty out of it last night, you still tried to convince us that you were alright to go on duty.”

 Reed moved over to make room for her without thinking about it much, preoccupied with trying to sort everything out. “I’m... thank you. Both of you.”

 She rested a hand on his arm, patting him reassuringly. “You’re welcome. Now, d’you want to sit up or lie down?”

 He shook his head ‘no’ then squeezed his eyes shut, wincing as his headache increased tenfold. “So why _does_ my head hurt? I had a headache when I woke up before, but Trip said he didn’t know anything about it.”

 She turned to look at Trip and saw that he was trying to sneak out of the door. “You didn’t tell him?” she practically hissed the question.

 Trip froze in mid-step, then slowly turned to face her with a guilty expression. “I, uh, boy I’m tired. I’d better get to bed. See you both later.”

 He made his escape, but not before receiving a serious glare from Jean. “Coward. You know that you’re a dead man.”

 Reed turned to look at her as the door closed behind Trip, seeming very confused by what they’d said. “What didn’t he tell me?”

 She scowled at the door for a second. “Like I said, he’s a coward.” Then she faced Reed again, making sure to get rid of the scowl before he saw it. “Here, could you move over a little? I’d rather not fall off the bed.”

 He scooted over slightly to give her more space, nodding very carefully. “Of course. Jean, what didn’t he tell me?”

 He watched her fidget, biting her lower lip and checking the time every few seconds. “D’you remember that drink I got for you down on the planet? It turns out it was a type of strong alcoholic beverage. Their local equivalent of rum.”

 At first he was confused. His brain refused to process what she’d said. Then, slowly, things began to make sense. His headache, the way his stomach felt, his headache, why everything seemed so loud and bright, his headache. He groaned when it finally sank in, letting his head fall forward until his chin rested on his chest.

 “I drank on duty.” His voice was a low, resigned mutter. “I got drunk _on duty_. On a mission, no less.” Now he was louder and picking up speed.

  _God, here we go. I’ve gotta stop him before he gets there_.

 “No, Malcolm, wait—“ She tightened her hand on his arm, shaking her head and trying to get his attention.

 But he didn’t seem to hear her and didn’t turn to look, either. “Well, I suppose Captain Archer will put me on report for conduct unbecoming of an officer, if he hasn’t already, that is, and ... “

 “No.” At a loss, she put her hands on his shoulders and shook him gently, maneuvering so he had to look at her. He just blinked, too surprised to do anything else.

 “Malcolm, stop and just listen to me. Trip and I should’ve scanned the drinks before letting you or Hoshi touch them. The captain doesn’t blame either of you. If anything, he’s mad at me and Trip for being careless and endangering both of you. But nobody was hurt, so as far as he’s concerned it’s a non-issue.”

 A spark of hope lit in his eye. _I want to believe her, but.._. “Are you sure? No reprimand, nothing?”

 She nodded, loosening her hold on his shoulders. _Okay, good. Good, this is progress_. “I read the mission report. All he said about you was that you ‘showed conspicuous bravery and selflessness in protecting the well-being of a crewmate.’ D’you know what that means? Malcolm, he’s putting you in for a commendation!”

 Instead of being pleased, as she’d expected, he looked utterly lost. “I don’t understand. I broke the regulations. There have to be consequences for that.”

 One of her hands moved up from his shoulder to gently poke a finger at his forehead. Despite the lightness of her touch, he still winced. “I’d say your hangover is consequence enough. That and being off duty ‘til tomorrow.”

 He didn’t answer, just got a thoughtful look on his face. “Did I make a fool of myself down there, when I was drunk? and please tell me the truth.”

  _To tease or not to tease, that is the question ..._ She checked his face. _Don’t tease_.

 “Well, Captain Archer was trying to thank the tavern owner ... He wouldn’t let us pay for the drinks and insisted that we keep the clothes and blankets he’d given to you and Hoshi. The captain was about to thank him and go into his schpiel about persuing future relations when you stepped up.”

 He groaned, closing his eyes. “God, I don’t remember that at all. What did I say?”

 “You thanked the tavern owner for letting you keep the blanket and told him that you enjoyed the drink, but I’m pretty sure he’d noticed that already. You would’ve said more but Trip stopped you. We left after that. On the way out you asked Trip whether he wanted to get some bourbon, but he thought you’d already had enough.”

 Now he was slowly shaking his head with his face in his hands. She took first one wrist and then the other, pulling them both away and nudging him under his chin, but he still hung his head dejectedly.

 “The captain...” His voice was a choked murmur, and while she understood why he was upset, the constant repetition of the same topic was starting to bug her. _Time for some tough-love._

 “... Was surprised and more than a little amused by what his tactical officer said, but more concerned about the effect of alcohol on the health of his comm. officer and the aforementioned tactical officer, who were both already in the early stages of hypothermia. Okay, Malcolm listen up; you are not in trouble. On the contrary, Captain Archer was impressed by your courage and quick thinking. And while we’re on the topic, he doesn’t know how you feel about water and he was still impressed. Because I do know, I’ve just gotta say that, like I told you on the planet, I’m really proud of you. Now, stop beating yourself up for doing a great job!”

 She nudged him and kept on nudging him until he cracked a smile. When he finally did, she got up and brought over a glass filled with juice. She sat down and held it out to him, smiling in a way which let him know that drinking it wasn’t optional.

 He took the proffered glass, looking at its contents while she got comfortable on the bed. “What’s in it?”

 She snagged a pillow and leaned against him, using the pillow as a buffer and ticking the fruits off on her fingers. “Tangerine, pineapple, orange and guava ... but you stopped listening after I said pineapple, didn’t you?”

 He grinned lopsidedly. “Am I that obvious?”

 “You are. Honestly, I don’t know how you manage on those undercover missions...” She fidgeted with the seam of a pillow, self consciously dropping her eyes to the bedspread for a moment. “Actually, you’re only obvious to people who spend an inordinate amount of time trying to figure you out.”

 “Like certain ensigns.” He took a sip, swallowed, and smiled. “Heaven...” He leaned back against the pillows to enjoy the rest of the drink.

 When the glass was half empty—or half full, depending on your outlook—Reed glanced over at her. He drummed his fingers on the rim of the glass, thinking before he spoke.

 “Not that I don’t appreciate all you’re doing for me, I really do, but ... why? Why do all this?”

 Her arm looped around his shoulders and a moment later he realized that she had put his free arm around her. “Because, Mr. Reed, for reasons passing understanding, I happen to care about you very much. I want you to be safe and happy.”

 His first impulse was to push her away, to stutter something about wanting her to leave, but...

  _... she said it herself; she cares about you. Don’t do this to yourself. Not again. Don’t miss out on a good thing just because you’re too afraid to take a chance. You care about her, too, but ..._

  _... but how does it always turn out when you care about a girl? It ends badly every single time. The girl always ends up dumping you. First she gets discouraged and hurt because you don’t seem to care about her, and when she can’t stand any more disappointment she leaves you. I can’t put Jean through that._

  _But she doesn’t want a relationship. Does she? Right now she just wants me to be happy. No pressure, she just wants to be here. It wouldn’t be gracious to thwart those plans. Besides, what’s the harm? I’ll worry about tomorrow tomorrow._

Smiling, he relaxed into the half-hug. “Thank you, and the feeling is mutual. As a matter of fact, I wouldn’t be against a little cuddling right about now ...”

 _Damn._ He started and looked over at her. “Ah, coddling. I meant to say coddling.”

She nodded, straining to keep a mock-serious expression on her face. “Of course that’s what you meant.” A smile peeked through. “Not that one is significantly less incriminating than the other. Either way, I mean to spend today spoiling you rotten.”

He settled back into the hug with a smile, enjoying how it felt to be warm and cared for. “In that case, I seem to remember you making a promise involving warm blankets, hot tea and a good book.” For the time being, at least, he wasn’t going to worry about anything.

“So I did. I’ve brought a teapot, so we won’t need to brew each mug individually, my personal stash of teas, two mugs, my quilt is sitting on the end of your bed, and I’ve brought a few good books for us to choose from. Not ‘the’ good book, though. I don’t have a copy of it, and that’s fine with me.”

His mouth quirked. “Amen.”

She looked sidelong at him, trying to decide whether or not she should hit him with a pillow. _Better wait till he feels better. I’ll play nice for now._

“Hmm. Bad jokes,” she tilted her head against his, “at least that’s a good sign. There’s food here, too, if you’re hungry. Toast, soup, fruit and more of that juice.”

She waved at a covered tray on the bedside table. Reed shook his head and started to protest but she held up a hand, silencing him.

“Just pick a few things to nibble on. You’re a little dehydrated, so I’m expecting you to have some more juice and maybe try the soup, and drinking plenty of liquids will help get rid of your hangover. The toast’ll settle your stomach.”

He looked at her quizzically. “Trip told me you were sick during the night, and since you do need to eat something ...”

He tensed a little, shifting uncomfortably. “I wish he hadn’t done that.”

 She patted his arm, briefly letting her hand move up to rub his back. “I’m sorry, but it’s done. No changing it now, but he didn’t go into any details. Besides, getting sick does kinda come with the whole glamorous hangover package.”

 Nodding, he relaxed again. “So, what books did you bring?”

 Reluctantly, she removed herself from the bed to pick up a few thick books, putting them on the bed near his knee. “See for yourself. Pick whatever you want. I’m going to start fixing the tea. How does a nice pot of raspberry sound?”

 “Mmm. Sounds good.“ He nodded approvingly, first at the tea and then at the books. “These all look good. Jean?”

 She turned around halfway to his stasis unit. “Mmm? I’m putting two sugars per mug and this pot makes five mugs, so it may seem like too much...”

 “No, it’s not that. I’m trying to decide between these books. Which do you recommend?”

"Well," she spoke with her back turned, busy getting the tea ready. "You saw that my favorite book is in there, right?"

Reed looked through them until a familiar title jumped out at him. He raised his eyebrows. "You mean 'The Princess Bride'?"

She twisted slightly in place, giving him a pleased, if slightly shy, smile. It was her favorite, and she liked that he had remembered. He'd enjoyed the movie on her birthday and seemed interested when she compared it to the book, explaining how Westley was more of a badass on paper than on film. "That's the one. Now, d'you want to-"

The teapot cut her off, whistling furiously, so she added the teabags to the water, carefully blowing on the teapot lid to avoid burning her fingers. The sugar was already in and now it was all set to steep. She looked at the clock, reminding herself to pour out the mugs in about five minutes.

He chuckled at her. "Ensign, there is a more efficient way to make tea."

"What have I told you about calling me that, hmm? Yes its less efficient, but I like doing it my way. It feels more homey somehow, less like we're on a starship and more like we're in an actual apartment somewhere." She carried the pot over, putting it down on the table by his bed. Before she did, Reed made room for it, moving the tray of food onto the bed. Except for the soup, of course, since that had to stay on a level surface.

"You were saying something, before?" Suddenly, maybe it was from looking at or smelling the food, he realized he was hungry. He reached for the soup and then, steadying the bowl with one hand, grabbed a slice of toast.

She sat down next to him again, careful not to jostle the soup. "Just wondering if you'd like to read it."

She watched as he dunked the toast into the soup, somehow managing to make the motion elegant. He did that - made ordinary things seem graceful - all the time. Sometimes he reminded her of an over sized cat, especially when he was trying to ascertain that an area was free from hostiles. He had a smooth but, at the same time, sharp way of moving when he was trying to clear a room. It was a serious job and he took it seriously, but seeing him glide across to a door frame and then snap around it, quickly bringing up his pistol to cover the area, amused her to no end. The seriousness of it, with how dedicated but silly he looked doing it, just amused her.

Reed smiled at her briefly before returning his attention to the soup. It was very tasty, some kind of ginger chicken with veggies and noodles, and he was hungry so it was disappearing quickly. “I’m sure I'll enjoy it, but it'll have to wait until my hands are free."

"Which shouldn't be long, with how quick you're going through that soup."

He slowed down, a bit sheepish. "No, don't." She touched his arm. "I'm glad you like it. Plus, you need to eat."

A small, shy smirk and he kept eating. "Now you sound like my mother. Or Phlox."

Her eyebrows raised, met and lowered again. "That's a visual. Phlox in an apron? Not sure how I'll sleep with that picture in my head."

The clock said that the tea had been steeping for almost seven minutes. Just right. She grabbed the mugs from the tray and put them near the pot. "Are you done with the soup?"

He bobbed his head, putting the bowl aside. "Want me to pour out?"

She couldn't help laughing a little. "I'm looking after you, remember?"

He leaned back against his locker, content. The soup had warmed him quite a bit and filled him up nicely. It was actually making him a little sleepy, so he was glad they'd be having tea. He didn't want to fall asleep and miss out on any of Jean's visit. Still, he wasn't fully warmed up from the river, and he felt a bit chilly.

"I believe your promise of coddling included a quilt?" Any other place with any other person he wouldn't have asked, but he'd gotten used to and even come to like it when Jean fussed over him.

She looked over at him sharply. He was suppressing his shivers pretty well, but she knew him well enough to know that he was doing it. "Yeah." She got up right away, moved everything off the bed and onto the easy chair and unfolded the quilt, tucking it up over his chest. She hovered, then turned and poured a mug of tea for him.

He took it without hesitation, holding it in both hands to absorb the warmth and then blowing on it before taking a sip. Jean poured herself a mug too but left it on the bedside table, retrieving the book from the easy chair and settling next to him on the bed again.

"Better?"

He nodded, taking another long sip of the tea. "Thank you."

She put an arm around him on the pretense of fixing the quilt. "Don't mention it. Now, you should stay in there and get properly warmed up. I'll start the book for us."

He let her take over, watching as she opened the book and flipped it to the beginning.

"This is my favorite book in all the world, though I have never read it. How is such a thing possible? I'll do my best to explain..."


	5. A Decision

_Crew Quarters, B Deck, 1230 hours, January 28 2152_

 As Trip looked at Reed, a light of recognition lit behind his eyes. “You love her, don’t you?” He bent down to look his friend in the eye. “Don’t you, Malcolm?”

 Reed shifted uncomfortably in the bed, smiling despite himself when he felt Jean’s leg pressing against his through the blankets. He quickly tried to get a hold of himself and spoke softly to the covers, unable to meet his friend’s gaze. “I’ll get over it.”

 Trip sat down in the chair and shook his head, speechless. Every so often he’d look over at Reed with an expression of confused wonder on his face. It seemed like he wanted to ask the other man a question but couldn’t quite find the right words.

 “I don’t want to hurt her, Trip, and you know how my relationships with women always turn out. I can’t let the way I feel ruin our friendship. Besides, you got over her. I’ll just have to do the same.”

 Trip shook his head. “That was completely different, Malcolm, and you know it. She knew how I felt and made it real clear that the feeling wasn’t mutual. But she cares about you very much. She has for months. If you tell her how you feel I really don’t think she’d shoot you down.”

 Reed chewed his lip for a moment, considering his friend’s words. _Maybe if I could... No. I won’t let anyone hurt her, myself included_. He shook his head and finally looked back up at Trip. “I’m not going to tell her, Trip, and please don’t say anything to her about this.”

 “Dammit, Malcolm!”

 Trip stood up from his chair, exploding at Reed, but he froze almost immediately and checked to see that Jean was still asleep. She moved very slightly, but didn’t wake up, and he sighed in relief. Reed smiled at her affectionately and gently covered her with one of his blankets. “She could sleep through an air-raid, this one.”

 Trip glared at his friend. It was so obvious that Reed cared for her and they both knew that she cared about him deeply. _What could he possibly be thinking?_

 “D’you really think that playin’ it safe is always the best thing t’do?” His voice was tense as he tried to stop himself from shouting again.  “D’you have any idea what you’re depriving yourself of? D’you really wanna be alone for the rest of your life? She cares about you, Malcolm. Hell, she might even love you and you’re just gonna sit there and ignore it? I can’t believe you.”

 He turned and headed for the door but stopped when he got there. For a long moment Trip stood silently with his back to Reed, trying to compose himself.

  _This is your friend you’re talkin’ to. Don’t be so hard on him. He might come to his senses on his own. Shoutin’ at him isn’t going to do any good._

 Trip’s shoulders slumped and he hung his head as he reached for the door control. Reed was surprised when his friend turned around to face him again. “I’m sorry for losing m’head, Malcolm. I still think you’re making a mistake, but it’s your call. You an’ Jean are my friends and I jus want both of you to be happy.”

 Reed nodded guardedly. “It’s alright Trip, as long as this conversation stays between us.”

 Trip smiled. _If he was angry with me he’d be calling me ‘Commander.’ I still don’t agree with him but it’s his life and I respect his decision_. “I won’t breathe a word.”

 He opened the door but turned around when he was halfway through the doorway. “Just so you know, when we were in that tavern and you were off sittin’ by yourself ... well, seeing you all alone and shivering seemed to almost cause her physical pain. I thought you should know that.”

 The door closed behind him as he disappeared into the corridor, leaving Reed to wrestle with his decision.


End file.
